Product Description

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Thrift Store Saints is a collection of true stories based on Jane Knuth's experiences serving the poor at a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in the inner city of Kalamazoo, Michigan. The book makes clear that it doesn't require heroic Mother Teresa-types to make a difference with the poor. Her moving stories demonstrate the profound joy any of us can experience when we see serving the poor not as social work, but as a spiritual path that leads us to the heart of Jesus. Paperback.

Publisher's Description

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First place winner for "Popular Presentation of the Catholic Faith" from the Catholic Press Association!

Thrift Store Saints is a collection of true stories based on Jane Knuths experiences serving the poor at a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in the inner city of Kalamazoo, Michigan. At the outset of the book, Knuth is a reluctant new volunteer at the store, sharing that her middle-class, suburban, church-going background has not prepared her well for this kind of work. By the end of the book, Knuth has undergone a transformation of sorts, and neither she nor we can ever view the poor in the same way again.

Knuths transformation is rooted in the prevailing message of Thrift Store Saints: When we serve the poor, they end up helping us as much as we help them. Throughout the book we are introduced to new "saints," as Knuth thoughtfully, at times humorously, describes how her encounters with the poorest people led her to the greatest riches of Gods grace. Thrift Store Saints makes clear that it doesnt require heroic Mother Teresa-types to make a difference with the poor, and it even more powerfully shows us that working with them is not gloomy, depressing work. Knuths moving stories demonstrate the profound joy any of us can experience when we see serving the poor not as social work, but as a spiritual path that leads us to the heart of Jesus.

Author Bio

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Jane Knuth has been volunteering at the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Kalamazoo, Michigan, for the last 15 years. She is also an eighth-grade math teacher. Jane and her husband, Dean, live in Portage, Michigan. This is Janes first book

Editorial Reviews

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"[Jane Knuth's] stories of the people that visit the store are very inspiring and she uses these stories to teach us the Vincentian principles of divine providence, spirituality and seeing the face of Christ in the poor."--Ozanam News

The stories are fascinating, the reflections probing.--Review for Religious

I read this little book by myself, then out loud to a few others. I found it powerful both ways. It captures the essence of truths heard in a gentle yet powerful way. The waitress' comments about Jesus on the cross asking his Father to forgive those who were crushing him alone is worth opening the book.

I live in Kalamazoo, though I've never met the author or been to the St. Vincent dePaul store. I can affirm that the portrait of Kalamazoo and its people is authentic and accurate.